


False Eden

by Caggyxx



Category: SOMA (Video Game)
Genre: Character Study, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Isolation, Loneliness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-10
Updated: 2016-07-10
Packaged: 2018-07-22 20:08:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7452345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Caggyxx/pseuds/Caggyxx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Robin entered the ARK, it wasn't exactly what she expected. It's not the perfect world she was promised. There must have been a mistake.</p>
            </blockquote>





	False Eden

She stands in a glorious courtyard. Beneath her is a mosaic of brightly coloured tiles whilst the skyline above is an intriguing mix of ancient architecture and modern design. Her eyes widen as she takes it all in. The spiralling stone towers, the shining glass domes and the astounding mountains that creep over the horizon. It’s incredible. Exactly how she’d imagined it and just as Catherine had said. A perfect world.

She walks forward, her head constantly turning, trying to capture all of the beauty at once. As she reaches the edge of the courtyard, she sinks down onto a small bench, the wooden slats comfortable despite their weathered appearance. With a small grin, she observes the other improbabilities of this world. The beaming sun, despite it being late October; that the surrounding wild flowers hadn’t made her sneeze; that she felt pleasantly warm in the sun, instead of sweaty and irritable. All the things that she had wished for in the previous world were now her reality. Leaning down, she gently plucks a purple flower from the soft grass and twirls it in her fingers, inhaling its sweet scent. Maybe here, she thinks with a contented smile, she can finally find what she’s looking for.

 

* * *

 

Two hours later and her smile’s slipped. Delicate petals scatter at her feet, distorted and torn as she worries them between her fingers. Rising swiftly, she walks to the centre of the courtyard and peers intently into windows and doorways, eyebrows creasing.  
“This isn’t right” She mutters in confusion, her searching increasing in desperation “Catherine said we would all be here”

The courtyard ends at a large marble archway and a paved path stretching out towards a quaint stone house. She breaks into a run towards it, excitement filling her at the thought of seeing others. She comes to a stop at the small red gate and pushes it open, following the cobbled pathway up to the matching red door. It’s the type of house described in fairy tales. Adorable animals scurry through the flowerbeds, whilst vines of honeysuckle and ivy creep up the red brick walls. She sighs in longing; it’s the kind of house she’s wanted since she was a child.

With determination, she knocks on the front door, pausing in shock when it swings open without resistance. She hesitantly steps into the hallway and her feet sink into the plush carpet. Though cosy, the house seems empty of life, with a blanket of silence resting on the premises. Confident that she won’t be confronted, she enters the peaceful sitting room and begins to poke around the house. As she peeps into cupboards and flicks through the books stacked in corners and on shelves, she’s comforted by the warm fireplace and a faint smell of vanilla. Following the scent, she reaches the kitchen and stops still, eyes immediately drawn to the envelope in the middle of the table.  
She peers about, unsettled, before sidling forwards and inspecting the letter. She inhales quickly as she reads the large print on the back.

**ROBIN BASS**

She swipes the letter from the table and hastily leaves the house, eager to rid herself of the feeling of eyes on the back of her neck. When she reaches the field opposite the house she stops and settles down onto the grass, placing the letter in front of her. The envelope is a plain white without embellishments, the flap neatly tucked inside to keep it closed. She slowly opens the envelope and pulls out the letter inside, unfolding the similarly plain paper with apprehension. She scans the page and breaks out into joyous laughter at the end, staring at the house in a new appreciation.  
Eagerly, she rereads the message, ensuring that her eyes hadn’t deceived her.

**Miss Bass**

**Welcome to the ARK, your new world. As you know, this digital world will enable you and the other crew members to live on as your brain scans that were loaded into the ARK machine. This allows us to preserve a part of ourselves and the human race, despite Earth’s destruction. The world you now live in is a replica of earth, but better. The weather is always pleasant; the scenery is always beautiful, there is no sickness, pain or suffering. This house is your new home; we hope it is to your liking. The ARK is divided into sections and a map has been provided on the back of this page. You are currently in the residential area; this is where you and other inhabitants of the ARK will reside, each with your own homes. There is also a shopping district, a leisure centre and many other features. Thank you for joining our programme, we hope your life within the ARK is pleasant and peaceful.**

**Catherine Chun and PATHOS II**

Rereading the text, her smile shifts into a frown as her eyes flick anxiously between the page and her surroundings. All she sees are fields, forests and the courtyard that she came from. She stares back to the paper that has begun to shake in her trembling hands, her gaze fixed on one line.

**‘..this is where you and other inhabitants of the ARK will reside, each with your own homes.’**

She looks at the empty space, lip trembling. There is only one house.

* * *

 

 

Days later, she lies outstretched in a field of daises, singing loudly to herself to fill the smothering silence. She stares up at the clear blue sky and remembers the games she’d play as a child. The afternoons spent lay in the grass with her sisters, weaving fantastical tales inspired by the shapes in the clouds. With an empty chuckle, she turns and stares towards a distant forest. There are no clouds and her sisters are gone.

Looking into the growing darkness of the forest, she wonders if this is really it. If this will be her eternity. Walking alone around an almost perfect world, trying to ignore that something is horribly wrong. This isn’t what she’d been promised and far from what she wanted.

She curls into herself, trying to find comfort in her own arms. She can’t go back; she knows that, it isn’t possible. The original Robin is dead. Or probably is…she doesn’t know, she has no memories of after the scan. That was her birth and nothing after that exists to her, that’s how it works.

But… she can still hear Mark’s words echoing in her head, can remember nodding along and tucking the knife under her pillow, resolute in her decision. Firm in her choice to end her life. What did it matter anyway? She would live on forever in the ARK, why worry about this dreary existence? She’d believed killing herself would save the original Robin the pain of living on a dead earth. Why should she live trapped under water, slowly dying, when she can be free in the ARK? That was why she probably did it, because she wanted to be free.

“Hello? Is anybody there?” She calls out for the hundredth time, but her voice floats off with the pleasant evening breeze and there is no response. Wiping away a tear, she stands and heads back towards her house, deciding to search again tomorrow. She has to keep searching, no matter what. She can’t be alone. That would be a worse prison than the ruins of PATHOS II.


End file.
